A federal jury has awarded $133,000 to a Canton man who was fired from his job at MGM Grand Detroit casino after refusing for religious reasons to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
The jury in Detroit returned the verdict Thursday afternoon, finding that the casino discriminated against Harry Yeremian, 56, who is Catholic, by denying him an exemption to its company wide vaccine mandate, an exemption he had sought based on a "sincerely held religious belief."
Yeremian worked as a warehouse manager at the casino until Oct. 16, 2021, when he was fired for missing MGM Grand's deadline for its non-union employees to get the vaccine. He had sought the religious exemption because he said he believed the COVID vaccines all used stem cell lines originating from aborted children in manufacturing or testing, and he believed that abortion is wrong.
But the casino turned down his religious accommodation request.
"(We) have concluded that your continued presence on property, unvaccinated, risks the health and safety of guests, coworkers and yourself," MGM Grand's denial letter to Yeremian states, according to his subsequent lawsuit against the casino. "The risks and burdens your request for accommodation would impose on the company are significant and cannot be resolved through mitigation measures."
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MGM Grand's vaccine mandate didn't apply to the casino's unionized workers — about 80% of its workforce — because under the National Labor Relations Act, MGM Grand couldn't unilaterally apply the policy on those workers.
Yeremian went on to sue MGM Grand Detroit in December 2022 in U.S. District Court, claiming violations of federal and state laws.
The jury on Thursday awarded Yeremian $33,000 for backpay and $100,000 for damages.
MGM Grand had sought to limit the backpay time period to before March 2022, which is when Yeremian found a new job at higher pay at Hollywood Casino at Greektown, where he continues to make an annual salary of $120,000, according to court documents.
In November, a federal jury in Detroit awarded $12 million to a Wyandotte woman, also Catholic, who was fired from her job at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan after not getting the vaccine for religious reasons.
"Neither the government nor a corporation has a right to force an individual to choose between his or her career and conscience," one of Yeremian's attorneys, Jonathan Marko of Marko Law, said in a statement. "Mr. Yeremian refused to renounce his faith and beliefs and was wrongfully terminated from his job. The jury’s verdict today tells MGM that religious discrimination has no place in America and affirms each person’s right to religious freedom.”